Breathed On Wrong

• This is the view from outside my work. The cigarette view. I don't know if you can tell from this photo, but I love it because it looks like a real-life version of a streetscape that either Dan Clowes or Chris Ware might have drawn, in that everything is all soothingly geometrical and muted.

• You may have noticed the link down there for the Bird Turds site. It's, um. "In beta." I am now accepting ideas as to what to do with it and how to make it good. Either here or there.

• Speaking of Chris Ware, though, the other day The Mystery Lady bought for me a Quimby the Mouse figure and - and - that book Maps and Legends! She's the best ever.

• So, a while back, in issue #46, The Fader had this great Vinyl Archeology feature called "The End," in which Jimmy Tamborello - of Dntel and Postal Service fame - discussed, like, great songs to die to. (Looking at his website, it seems like he has remained pretty involved with that theme.) It's one of my favorite articles they've ever published, and not only because he's super spot-on with his selections. (Brian Eno's "An Ending (Ascent)?" Jack Nitszche's "Starman Leaves?" Come on. Those are perfect dying songs.) As a concept, it's a great conversation to have.

The other day me and the Rai Chile were talking about it, and he was like:

'Off the top of my head, that song that's playing in the background when Cameron does that 'When Cameron was in Egypt's land, let my Cameron go' thing would be a great song to die to.'

And thus began a search for what the hell that song is called that has lasted, so far, like 48 total hours.

I'm not talking about the lyrics. They come from "Go Down Moses." What I'm looking for is a full-length version of the lovely synth instrumental that plays behind the vocals. At this point I kind of doubt that such a thing exists, a suspicion shared by synth-guru Holotone, who cites the addition of harmonizing vocals as evidence that it's probably an incidental selection made by either Arthur Baker, Ira Newborn, or John Robie, the guys credited with providing original music for the movie.

Two final things about this:

1. You'd think that a guy like myself, who seriously based his whole life on Ferris Bueller's Day Off for many, many years would own a copy of the shit on DVD. Or, failing that, that if that same guy now worked at a video store, you'd think he'd at least have access to it. But I don't own it, and it's always checked out, so I can't do the simple thing and just check the damn credits.

2. The good thing about any worthwhile-yet-unsuccessful internet search is all the shit that you unintentionally find along the way. Like this original script I came across, which has a ton of dialog that didn't make the final cut. My favorite part:

Ferris

My uncle went to Canada to protest the war, right? On the Fourth of July he was down with my aunt and got drunk and told my Dad he felt guilty he didn't fight in Viet Nam. So I said, "What's the deal, Uncle Jeff? In wartime you want to be a pacifist and in peacetime you want to be a soldier. It took you twenty years to find out you don't believe in anything?"

(snaps his fingers)

Grounded. Just like that. Two weeks.

(pause)

Be careful when you deal with old hippies. They can be real touchy.

It's like the search for the fuckin' Philosopher's Stone, only on like a way insignificant level.